


Seasons

by enefea



Series: Natsume Week 2016 [3]
Category: Natsume Yuujinchou | Natsume's Book of Friends
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-07
Updated: 2016-10-07
Packaged: 2018-08-20 01:44:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8231788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enefea/pseuds/enefea
Summary: written for @natsumeweek, day 5Prompt: seasons (winter/spring/summer/autumn)   “I won a game against her and then wound up visiting every now and then to play more. But one day, I just decided to stop. I’d forgotten how fleeting your lives are.”





	

When Madara met Natsume Reiko, it was autumn.  The trees were alight with fire.  Tsuyukami had invited him to watch the falling autumn leaves.  It didn’t hurt that there was mention of sake among his offerings.

Under a fall of Momiji leaves, there she stood, laughing, as some weak youkai sank to the ground in defeat.  It looked an interesting picture.  He decided that Tsuyukami’s invitation could wait so he could observe what was happening a bit more.

After the youkai scribbled something on a piece of paper and promptly disappeared, the girl suddenly turned to him.  “You look like a powerful ayakashi.  Want to play a game?”

He didn’t want to admit it, but he nearly lost.  Him, a strong and majestic youkai, nearly losing to some slip of a human girl much younger than all his years combined.  It was a blow to his ego.  Still, he was loath to admit that the the girl was powerful and fascinating.  Maybe visiting Tsuyukami wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

He didn’t realize it yet, but it was the start of an eventful few years.

 

* * *

 

Winter that year was unusually cold and especially harsh.  A snowstorm had even occurred a few days before; great barren trees snapping at the severe winter winds.  

For a great youkai like him, the cold wasn’t a problem.  But the local ayakashi seemed to have decided to hide themselves away from the snow and ice.  Even Tsuyukami had opted to just stay inside his little shrine.  The humans, as well, seemed to have chosen hiding in their homes and only leaving for important things.

Natsume Reiko, too, had favored shelter instead of the outdoors.  He had scarcely saw her since he decided to visit.  She was spiritually strong, but was still a puny human.  He decided that he couldn’t fault her for her absence.  Still, without anyone to harass (the local ayakashi), drink with (Tsuyukami) or kill the time with (Reiko), it was extremely dull.

According to a swallow ayakashi, winter would be particularly long.  Madara was a great and terrible ayakashi.  He could survive in the cold and without food or water for periods of time.  Boredom, however, was another matter.

Winter would thaw and the local ayakashi would come out again.  Natsume Reiko, too, wouldn’t be bound by her weak human constraints.  In that moment, he decided to leave for a short while.  After all, what was time to an ayakashi?  When the next season comes, he would return.

Winter  that year, however, was bleak and it continued to be for years after.

 

* * *

 

 

With spring comes a wave of nostalgia.  By chance, he met Misuzu at a swamp god’s wedding.  They drank under a shower of sakura petals.  Memories of lazy afternoons, bickering ayakashi, intriguing duels, and unusual games filled him; not far behind was long silky hair, narrow brown eyes, a lazy smirk, and a somewhat haughty female voice.  When the party ended, he decided it was due time for another visit.

Upon arriving, he felt that something was wrong.  He wasn’t sure what, but it ate at him.  Confused, he made his way to Tsuyukami’s shrine.

“My!  Isn’t this Madara?  You haven’t shown yourself in a while.”

“Tsuyukami.”

“And?  What brings you here?”

“Hm? I met Misuzu not too long ago, and I remembered there was something interesting around these parts.”

“Ah, you mean Reiko, don’t you?”

“Hm.”

Tsuyukami eyed him strangely, “Well, she’s not here anymore.”

That made Madara pause. “‘Not here’?  What does that mean?  Did Reiko pass away?”

“‘Reiko’, huh?” Tsuyukami snorted, “What happened to ‘little girl’?  Or maybe ‘annoying human’?”

“Shut up, Tsuyukami!” he said, annoyed, “Hurry up and tell me what you mean with ‘not here’?”

“Maa, she went away,” Tsuyukami said, a sadness to his voice.

“Went away?  Where?”

The god shrugged.  “I’m not quite sure of the details.  But it seemed she moved to another relative’s place.  She didn’t say much, just that she was going away and not sure when she’ll return, or if she could.  It was a few years back.”

“Hm.”

“Ara, you seem a bit sad, Madara.  Did the little human girl finally wormed herself into your cold little heart?”

“Hmph.  I just thought it’s a shame she’s not around anymore.  She was interesting, for a human.”

Tsuyukami laughed.

It wasn’t long after that when exorcists heard of a powerful youkai inhabiting the area and sealing it away in a maneki-neko statue.  The years that followed were filled with nothing but colorless dreams.

 

* * *

 

 

Summer was hot and hectic.  The days were filled with different ayakashi either going after the book or wanting their names returned, annoying exorcists who try to rope Natsume into that path, and various other puny humans who coax the brat into different human activities.

Under the shade of a katsura tree, Madara waited for Natsume and a promised ice cream.  He frowned.  The brat was taking a long time.  With a long-suffering sigh, he padded from his shelter and went in search of the brat.

He didn’t have to go too far to see him with a youkai.  It was the kappa again.  Who was eating his treat.

“Damn it, Natsume!  Who gave you permission to give my ice cream to that weakling?”

“Sensei!  Stop it!” the brat cried, grabbing him.  He ignored him and tried, uselessly, to stretch his arms and reach for the kappa.  

“If you don’t stop now, sensei, I won’t buy you another one!”

Madara huffed, “I’m a great and terrifying youkai, you can’t threaten me!”

“I-i think I’ll be going now, N-Natsume-oyabun..”

“Really?  Are you sure you’re okay now?” Natsume asked over Madara’s grumbling.

“Y-yes, Natsume-oyabun.  It was nice seeing you again, Madara-sama.” the kappa said, before running away into the forest.

“Hmph.  You’re too weak, Natsume.  You shouldn’t just be stopping for any youkai.”

“Whatever, sensei.  Now, do you want that ice cream or not?”

“Only if you get me an ikayaki later.”

“You’re eating too much again, sensei.”

“Silence, brat!  There’s nothing as eating too much for a great and powerful ayakashi like me!”

Madara huffed.  The days were filled with troublesome things, but life was once again amusing.


End file.
